THE EASE & JOY OF MORNINGS (December 2018)

Join Kozan for “Ease and Joy of Mornings,” December 16—a quiet morning designed to introduce you to the art of zazen. It is an ideal entryway for beginners and even intermediate or long-time meditators who want a refresher course on this “dharma gate of joy and ease” as described by Zen Master, Dogen-Zenji.

Street Chaplaincy by Jackie Hider

I started my journey with the homeless community in 2010 after I had been accepted into the Upaya Buddhist Chaplaincy Program. I wanted to get some experience working in situations that were new to me and that I thought would challenge me.

My second contact with the homeless community came as I was volunteering with the San Diego Veterans for Peace. I joined them as they handed out sleeping bags, stuff sacks, and ponchos to people sleeping on the streets. Whereas the Dharma Bums did not really interact with people, the veterans spent a lot of time talking and listening to people’s stories. We would wake people up who were sleeping on cardboard and covered with as little as a light jacket and give them a sleeping bag. We helped people move out of the rain. We gave sleeping bags to anybody who needed one, but when we talked to homeless veterans, the interaction was personal and overflowing with connection and compassion. The vets were brothers whether they were giving or receiving a sleeping bag.

The first night I worked with Jan, a vet from the Vietnam War, and what I was taken by was his friendly, relaxed, and non-judgmental concern. He simply asked, “How are you doing? What do you need?” It was like he was talking with someone over a backyard fence. I went out with the Veterans for Peace six times and learned about families who live on the streets. I learned that some people on the streets are very articulate about their circumstances. I learned the importance of the question, “What do you need?” I learned that there were not many bathrooms around. I started to learn how to listen.

Then, while casually exploring the topic of homelessness, I came upon the topic of street chaplaincy, or street ministry and was intrigued. In May 2012, I attended a Wellness Gathering, a weekly event organized by the Marin Interfaith Street Chaplaincy and led by Reverend Paul Gaffney, who is both a Christian and Buddhist chaplain. We met in a park close to downtown San Rafael, which is a short distance north of San Francisco. When I arrived, there were about fifteen people scattered around the park. Reverend Paul was chatting with a few people, and after about ten minutes he moved to one end of the park. Most everyone moved to join him in a circle.

More people kept arriving, and by the end of the gathering there was a group of about thirty people in attendance. A couple of people appeared intoxicated; one young man in a tattered shirt was crawling around picking bits of un-seeable stuff from the grass. Several had the unkempt appearance that I associate with people who sleep on the streets. There were also people who appeared to have just gotten off of work. It was a mixed group. Most of us were sitting in the circle; there were a few though that sat way outside the circle. One woman made it clear that she did not want anybody near her. There were squabbles over smoking and a couple of angry outbursts. There was some friendly chatting and many people were sitting quietly. The man next to me welcomed me.

Jackie Hider (second from left) on retreat with the Faithful Fools

Reverend Paul started by leading us in a short “gathering together” ceremony. We passed around a smudge stick and then did a short silent meditation. Then, he passed around a feather and invited each of us to send a prayer out into the world. We concluded with a prayer of connection and caring for all beings… At this point, Reverend Paul brought out a poem called, Your Mother and My Mother by Hafiz, a 14th century Sufi poet. Here are the first three lines:

Fear is the cheapest room in the house
I would like to see you living in better conditions, For your mother and my mother were friends.
(Ladinsky, 1999)

We then had a deep and profound discussion about the poem. Paul had to simply ask, “What do you think Hafiz means here?” and the discussion carried itself. Most people were participating. We talked about metaphorical meanings. One woman commented about the first three lines, saying that she felt the same way as Hafiz. The man sitting next to me said, “Injustice against one of us is injustice against all of us.” We even tried to figure out if it was translated from Farsi or Arabic.

Reverend Paul commented that the Three Poisons, (greed, aversion, delusion) all come from a place of fear. Then, he said that we all have difficult emotions, and fear is one of the big ones. That is what makes us human. All humans feel all of these emotions. It is important for us to look at what we are practicing. We do not eliminate our fear; we get to know it. We can even welcome it. He opened a discussion about the difference between reacting and responding, and many people joined in. It was a full, rich and deep discussion.

I left this Wellness Gathering really excited, realizing that, for me, something important had happened. This gathering had disassembled my expectations. I decided that I wanted to know more about street chaplaincy.

Photo via the Faithful Fools

In Oct, 2016 I moved across the street from the Fools and became a full-time volunteer for a year. During this time I have accompanied many people who are either un-housed or living in small rooms in our community. I have learned a lot about the complexities of needing and receiving services. I have worked with students who come to do a street retreat or a longer immersion into life in the Tenderloin. I answer the Faithful Fools’ door, host meetings, and do a lot of listening.

Currently, I am enrolled in a four-month hospital chaplaincy training program at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital. This is the hospital where the people who live in my neighborhood go when they get sick and part of our system of care. My training and my year-long commitment both end in December and I am very curious to see what will come next. The Zen Peacemaker Tenets, Not-Knowing, Bearing Witness, and Compassionate Action are invaluable in my work as a street chaplain.

Note: Some people object to the label “homeless.” I have heard the words “un-housed” and “housing challenged.” I have chosen the term “homeless community.” This includes people who are homeless and sleep on the streets, people who are living in shelters, people who live in transitional housing funded by the city of San Francisco, and people who live in Single Room Occupancy Hotels (SROs.) It also includes the people who serve the homeless community.

Thank you for sharing your story. I came across your thesis on Street Chaplaincy when I did a Google search for that term – I had never heard it before. I read your entire thesis and learned so much! It really inspired me – thank you for sharing your experiences of street chaplaincy. We need more people like that in the world – such a great example of taking care of each other. 🙂